unity-design team mailing list archive

[Ryan Gauger <rtgkid@xxxxxxxxx>]

Isn’t there a better way to deal with this? I think the bugs could probably
be fixed semi-easily by someone who knows how to (I don’t know how to fix
bugs). IMHO, the top panel shadow does add to the desktop experience. It
adds dimension to the desktop and panel. I think it looks really flat, like
Unity 2d without the shadow. Thanks!

In Christ,
Ryan

Sent from my Windows 8 PC <http://windows.microsoft.com/consumer-preview>

 *From:* Alan Bell <alanbell@xxxxxxxxxx>
*Sent:* Sunday, June 3, 2012 2:46:53 AM
*To:* Ayatana Mailing List <unity-design@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Subject:* [Unity-design] dropping the top panel shadow

I would like to propose removal of the 'shadow' cast by the unity top panel.

This shadow causes the following bugs

#956863 Top panel shadow is drawn above presentation when using LO Impress
with Presenter Console
#763579 Panel drop shadow causes issues for screencasting apps
#871758 Top Bar, window managment - top bar shadow not falling on restored
windows that are partially off the top edge of the screen
#892718 [multimonitor] Opening dash on one screen removes panel shadow on
the other
#967294 Unity panel shadow should not draw over unfocussed windows

The basic problem is that the shadow is not semantically a shadow at all,
it isn't an openGL rendered consequence of the panel being above the
desktop with a lightsource illuminating it and casting a shadow. It is just
a translucent PNG stuck on the screen as decoration and isn't in the NUX
layer outside the scope of compiz - like the top panel is. Under normal
circumstances the shadow is positioned close to where the bottom of the
panel should be if the panel is the default size - this is delicate. If you
zoom into the desktop the shadow zooms but the panel doesn't and all the
bugs kind of relate to the shadow and panel becoming disconnected with each
other, because they are not actually attached to each other. I don't think
these problems can be fixed with the current implementation strategy - if
it was a shadow actually cast by the panel it might work better.

Visually I don't think the shadow really adds anything to the desktop
experience, and the assorted bugs really detract from it and do not give
the pixel perfect impression we are going for.

I am happy to do the work to patch it out if people agree.


Alan.


-- 
I work at http://libertus.co.uk


-- 
Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~unity-**design<https://launchpad.net/~unity-design>
Post to     : unity-design@lists.launchpad.**net<unity-design@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~unity-**design<https://launchpad.net/~unity-design>
More help   : https://help.launchpad.net/**ListHelp<https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp>